Monday, October 7, 2019

Are Virtual Restaurants the Future of Retail Foodservice

Chain restaurants customer
counts continue to crumble as convenience stores, and grocery stores
develop, create, and display more fresh meals that are Ready-2-Eat and or are
just Heat-N-Eat. Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® believes virtual restaurants
with highly trained food marketers will be ‘The Next Big Thing’ or
sector to fuel growth within the restaurant sector.

Here is a great example; Junzi Kitchen, which recently received $5
million in an early funding round, is looking at ghost kitchens and other
outside-the-box models to fuel its growth. Here is the story:

“Yong Zhao, the
co-founder and CEO of Chinese fast-casual concept Junzi Kitchen, noticed a
disheartening trend: Neighborhood Chinese takeout restaurants—most of them
mom-and-pop operations—are closing at a fast clip as their owners retire and
the next generation opts not to carry on the business.

So, the New York
City-based Junzi Kitchen, which last month received $5 million in an early
funding round, is using a portion of its investment money to explore buying out
some of those independent operators and turning their stores into new
restaurants focused on “more elevated Chinese takeout,” according to Zhao.

Zhao, who grew up in
China and moved to the U.S. to attend graduate school at Yale University. “We
can take a huge market share within a short period of time because of the
existing infrastructure.” “We are right
now researching it, putting together a team around it and developing a menu,”
said

Zhao hopes to have at
least one of those refurbished Chinese takeout restaurants running in the next
six months. Now, Zhao raised $5 Million how many of you could do the same thing
with a food or restaurant sector in which you are comfortable?Johnsonbelieves lots of you!

OK, back to Junzi
Kitchen, which opened its first unit near Yale in 2015 and now has restaurants
near Columbia University, New York University and Bryant Park in Manhattan. The
chain plans to open a fifth store in coming weeks.

The concept (in
Chinese philosophy, a junzi is a person of integrity), grew out of work at the
Yale Entrepreneurial Institute in which Zhao and his partners wanted to create
food more as it’s actually eaten in China and less like the deep-fried dishes
with sticky-sweet sauces many Americans associate with the cuisine.

“Chinese food in
China is so different,” he said. “There’s the rich culture behind it. … Let’s
reverse process Americanized Chinese food to the Chinesification of the
American restaurant.”

So Zhao and his team
have created a menu that blends traditional Chinese
flavors with formats familiar to Americans. The Junzi Kitchen menu includes
options such as northern Chinese noodle bowls with a variety of toppings and
bings (meats and fillings wrapped in thin dough).

Junzi has also
partnered with virtual kitchen operator Zuul
Kitchens to launch a delivery-only spot in Manhattan later
this month. “Zuul Kitchens is a great opportunity for us to understand the
delivery landscape,” Zhao said.

Junzi’s $5 million
funding round was led by LDR Ventures, an initial investor in Sweetgreen, as well as Union Square Hospitality
Group President Chip Wade and others. Zhao is working on raising funds for the
concept’s next round of expansion. Ok, all of your regular readers, what are
you waiting for? Need help call us? This is where we excel Grocerant niche
Ready-2-Eat fresh Food? So, What’s for Dinner?

Are
you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing tactics look more
like yesterday that tomorrow? Visit www.FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information
or contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us Remember success
does leave clues and we just may have the clue you need to propel your
continued success.